Dolan Twins - One Shots
by underthesewaves
Summary: A collection of one shots centered around Ethan and Grayson aka The Dolan Twins, some serious topics with a lot of fluff. 1. Grayson can't sleep without Ethan due to his anxiety but what happens when he is forced to sleep alone? 2. Ethan noticed something isn’t right with Grayson’s new relationship.
1. Sleeping Alone - Panic Attack

Grayson couldn't sleep without Ethan, it wasn't something he was proud of considering he was 17 years old, but his anxiety would keep him up all night without him. Ethan has always accepted this and been there for Grayson, being sure to never make him feel bad about not being able to sleep without him. Ethan loves to make Grayson feel cared for and protected, and this arrangement lets him do just that. Only today Ethan and Grayson got into a fight, normally they'd forget about the fight within a few hours but this time Ethan was really pissed and refused to even look at Grayson for the rest of the day. So when nighttime rolled around Grayson didn't know what to do, he definitely did not feel welcome to go sleep in Ethan's bed like he normally did but he knew he'd likely have a panic attack without him.

After finding Ethan's door locked he realized he had to suck it up for the night, so he did everything he could think of to get into a relax state and hopefully ward off his anxiety. He drank chamomile tea, lit his 'stress relief' candle, wrapped himself up in a heated blanket and snuggled his childhood teddy bear. None of it helped though when he took in the silence of the room, the sound of Ethan's breathing missing. His own breathing picked up as the familiar pit of anxiety entered his stomach making him shiver in an unpleasant way. His hands shaking as he held tighter to the bear in his hands. The worst part of this was there was nothing he could do, sleeping in Ethan's room wasn't an option, he had to make it through the night by himself. Suddenly sweaty Grayson climbed out from under the heated blanket and off his bed, scooting to the corner where his panic attack consumed him

Ethan, having forgotten his door was locked, wondered where Grayson was. Sure they'd had a pretty bad fight and Ethan got pretty angry over it but Grayson couldn't actually think he'd make him deal with his anxiety all by himself. Before them sleeping in the same bed became a permanent thing Ethan almost lost Grayson to his previous coping method, he never wanted that to happen again. Ethan didn't exactly know what to do, Grayson must be pretty mad if he decided to sleep in his own room but he was also too protective of Grayson to feel comfortable leaving him alone. In the end he decided he would just check up on Grayson, if he was already sleeping he'd leave him alone.

When he went to leave his room he realized his door was locked this whole time. His heart dropped a little, Grayson probably thought he locked him out on purpose.

"Sh!t" he quickly made his way over to Grayson's room and soon realized Grayson definitely didn't voluntarily chose to sleep by himself. He was pressed into the corner, head buried in his knees, and he was struggling to breath.

"Gray, oh my gosh" he whispered. Grayson looked up at him with terrified eyes, "Eth?" Ethan rushed over to Grayson and pulled him into a hug, "it's okay bud, I'm here now" Ethan mumbled as he rubbed his back. Ethan was the only one who was allow to touch Grayson when he got like this which Ethan was thankful for because he had no idea how he'd handle this situation if he couldn't hold Grayson.

"I thought you were... mad at me" Grayson said between shaky breaths, his hands gathering fistfuls of Ethan's sweater.

"I was but I overreacted, I'm sorry" Ethan said honestly

"It's okay... sorry I'm such a baby."

"You're not a baby okay? Everyone struggles with something." Ethan said.

Grayson stayed silent. "Do you want to move to the bed?" Ethan asked

"Not yet," Ethan could tell Grayson was still trying to get his breathing and shaking under control. After a few minutes Grayson felt calm enough to move back onto his bed with Ethan. They wrapped themselves up in the blankets, and Grayson lied his head on Ethan's shoulder, Ethan's arm was around Grayson

"You're sure you're okay? You don't need your medication or anything?" Ethan questioned worried

"I'm good right here" Grayson said, already dozing off a little.

When Ethan was sure Grayson had fallen asleep, he gently looked over Grayson's arms, met with the sight of old scars. Ethan rubbed his thumb along the raised skin and sighed, kissing the top of Grayson's forehead whispering "never again

My first Dolan twins one shot completed, request a prompt in the comments!


	2. Gray’s New Boyfriend - Abuse

Hey guys, I hope everyone is doing okay with the recent news, including the twins. It's heartbreaking to know that Sean is gone, my thoughts go out to them and their family.

Trigger Warning - Domestic Abuse

Grayson could look out for himself, Ethan knew that but he also knew there was something off with Grayson and his new boyfriend, Beck.

Normally Grayson was always his happiest when he was in a relationship but this latest one has had the opposite affect. Grayson would sleep in until 1:00pm now instead of his previous 8:00am. Ethan hadn't seen him eat without being told to for the past month and he was always locked away in his room. It's almost like he's depressed. At first Ethan didn't think Beck was connected to Grayson's behavior at all but after spending time together with them, Ethan started to notice some things.

Like how tense Grayson always seemed to be when Beck was over, or how Grayson would cringe against Beck's touch, flinching at any sudden movements. Or the abnormal amount of bruises Grayson seemed to be getting recently. These behaviours confused Ethan more than anything, he only really started piecing things together during one of their movie nights.

It was Friday night and for once Beck wasn't over, so Ethan seized the opportunity to spend time with Grayson, as he's been so busy with Beck lately.

So they both set out to find as many blankets as they could and made their way to the living room. They nestled deep into the cocoon of blankets, Grayson seemed the most content Ethan had seen him in weeks. Wishing Grayson's happy mood could last forever, Ethan opened up Netflix.

"I'm feeling a horror movie" Ethan said.

"Alright, guess that's cool. Which one?"

"How about this one?" Ethan said, referring to one with a dark figure on the cover. "Netflix just put it on here a few days ago."

"Can't, promised Beck I'd watch that one with him."

"Cmon he doesn't have to know"

"No, he'd find out somehow, trust me." Grayson said, good mood briefly leaving him.

"It's just a movie but alright, how about this one then?"

"Looks stupid."

"Fine, this one?"

"No, seen it."

"This one?"

"Okay, looks interesting." The movie had a picture of a creepy looking teenage couple on it.

They played rock, paper, scissors over who would leave the blanket fortress to go make popcorn, Grayson lost. Once they had their popcorn, and shut off the lights to make things spookier, they started the movie.

They quickly realized what they were in for when the opening scene started. The main character was being beaten by her abusive boyfriend.

Ethan was too focused on the movie to notice Grayson's change in body language. He stopped leaning against Ethan and started fidgeting with his hands, eyes refusing to look at the screen.

"Jeez, just leave his ass!" Ethan blurts out, throwing a piece of popcorn at the tv.

Grayson's fidgeting increasing at these words, along with his breathing. He can feel tears in his eyes but he digs his nails into his arm to keep them from falling.

By the end of the unnecessarily long abuse scene, Grayson is finds it hard to keep it together. His hands are shaking and he can't get his breathing to slow down. He wants to tell Ethan to shut it off, but he knows he would ask why.

Grayson takes a deep breathe and tries to distract himself by reaching for the popcorn that was on Ethan's lap. Unfortunately for Grayson, Ethan notices his shaking hands right away.

"Hey, you okay? You're shaking" Ethan says pausing the movie. "Too scary?"

Grayson can only choke out a shaky "no."

"You sure? You look like you're about to have a panic attack. Was the abuse scene too much?" This is when something clicks inside Ethan. He thinks of Beck and Grayson's dementor around him. He thinks of the bruises Ethan's been seeing on Grayson lately. Ethan's breathing stops. "Hey Is there something going on with Beck that you're not telling me?" Ethan says softly, taking one of Grayson's fidgeting hands in his.

"What?! No!" Grayson says, pulling his hand back. A panicked look crosses his face, and his eyes won't meet Ethan's. "I need to go" Grayson says, breathing rapidly. He struggles to free himself of the blankets, making him panic more. "Get off, get off, get off" growing more panicked still. Grayson finally manages to get the blankets off but falls off the couch and on the floor with a thud.

Ethan hyperaware of the fact that Grayson is definitely having a panic attack, Ethan stands up to help him. A look of terror crosses Grayson's face as he looks up at Ethan. Grayson holds his arms in front of his face as though to protect himself. Grayson is full on sobbing at this point, muttering incoherent words to Ethan. Only later does Ethan realize he was repeating the words 'I'm sorry.'

"Gray?" Ethan bends down to try and comfort Grayson, but Grayson only sobs harder, trying to crawl away. "Gray, it's me, Ethan your brother. You're okay, I'm not going to hurt you." Ethan pulls Grayson's arms away from his face. "It's okay buddy, it's just me." Grayson struggles in Ethan's grip for a second before a look of recognition passes over his face. Ethan takes this moment to open his arms in a hug, giving Grayson the option to reject it. Grayson gladly falls into his arms, gripping the back of his shirt tightly. Crying hard and shaking against Ethan.

"What does Beck do to you, Gray?"

"I c-can't, he said he'd kill me if I told you."

Ethan takes a deep breath "Gray, you need to tell me."

Staying silent at first, Grayson pulls away to lift his shirt to reveal a mess of bruises, he looks skinner than last time he saw him too. "I-i didn't know what to do" Grayson finally sobs out. Ethan feels the air leave his lungs as he takes in Grayson's damaged torso. A rush of anger passing through him, he can't believe he didn't realize sooner."

"I love you" Ethan holding his hand again, rubbing circles across his knuckles, trying to calm him down. But Grayson didn't seem to be calming down, he seemed to be getting more anxious.

"Oh my god, he's going to kill me, I shouldn't've t-told you. I need to go see him." Grayson said, trying to stand up, but Ethan pulled him back down.

"No you aren't, you're never seeing that asshole again. He's not going to hurt you, I won't let him."

"What if he tries to hurt you? I need to apologize before he finds out I told you." Grayson said frantically.

"He's not going to, and you have no reason to apologize, I'm glad you told me." Ethan says, pulling Grayson back into a hug.

Ethan continues to console him, vowing to protect Grayson from Beck at all costs. Slowly but surely Ethan feels Grayson start to relax in his arms, falling asleep soon after. Ethan makes a mental note to deal with Beck as soon as possible.

He quietly reaches onto the couch and grabs a pillow. He slowly lays down with Grayson still in his arms. Knowing there will be much to talk about in the morning, he drifts off to sleep.

let me know if you'd want a part two to this! And if you have any feedback or suggestions for what I should write next!


	3. Gray's New Boyfriend Pt 2 - Abuse

A lot of you asked for part two, so here it is! Sorry it took so long :(

If you haven't read part one, I highly suggest you read it (it's the previous chapter) otherwise this won't make a lot of sense

* * *

Gray's New Boyfriend - Domestic Abuse / Part 2

Grayson's POV

When Grayson woke up the next morning, still in laying with Ethan in the living room, he felt light knowing he wasn't helpless in his situation anymore. Ethan knew and was actually upset about what was happening to Grayson. This thought alone gave him reassurance that he wasn't being dramatic, that Beck was wrong, Grayson didn't deserve the things Beck did to him.

He got up and decided that today was going to be a good day, he was finally going to be free from Beck's temper. He headed to the kitchen and start making Ethan's favourite, pancakes, to repay him for helping him last night and just the past month in general. Even though he was embarrassed about the whole thing, Ethan didn't seem to judge him for a second. After getting used to Beck's constant scrutiny it was a nice change.

He woke up Ethan who was happy to see the change in mood from Grayson, he was especially grateful for the pancakes even though Grayson didn't eat much of them himself.

"So... I don't know if you wanna talk about this right now but what are you gonna do about Beck?" Ethan asked.

"I was going to go over to his apartment to end things with him." Grayson said as he cleaned their dishes.

"Okay, when are we leaving?"

"We?"

"You really think I'm going to let you go there alone?"

"Fine, but you're waiting in the car." Grayson said, "He's going to think we're ambushing him if you come in too!" He added after seeing the look on Ethan's face.

* * *

"Ten minutes, if you're not out by then I'm coming in." Ethan said as they pulled up in front of Beck's apartment complex. Too nervous to object, Grayson slowly got out of the car and made his way into the complex.

He took his time walking down the hall towards Beck's flat. Standing, staring at the metallic number 38 on the door for far too long before he finally built the courage to knock. His heart pounding in his chest, breath hitching when he sees the door opening.

"Gray? I was just thinking about you!" Beck says with a smile on his face. This is what started breaking Grayson's confidence, and he began questioning if he was doing the right thing. Beck wasn't always bad, he knew how to be sweet, he knew how to make Grayson forgive him no matter what.

Then Grayson remembers all the bad parts of Beck too, all the bruises he left him and the damage his done to Grayson's self-esteem. How depressed this whole relationship has made him. He thinks of Ethan waiting in the car, probably worried out of his mind.

"We need to talk." says Grayson after a lull of silence. Confused, Beck leads Grayson inside, both taking a seat on the old second hand couch. "I don't have much time but... we need to break up." Grayson says quickly, just wanting to rip off the bandage. Beck was stunned for a second, before barely containing the fury behind his eyes.

"Break up?" Beck chuckled darkly. "You're kidding, right?"

"N-nope. You don't treat me right Beck and you know it." Grayson says trying to stay confident.

"Don't treat you right?! You must be delusional, you're the one who causes half our fights! I've never done anything to you that you didn't earn."

Grayson remains silent, trying hard to not see the truth in Beck's words.

"Fine. If you want to break up with me, just know your whole family and your 'fan-base' will know by tomorrow that Grayson Dolan is gay." Beck threatens, knowing that Grayson's biggest secret is his sexuality. He is only out to Ethan for a reason. "I got all the proof I need right in here." He said pointing to his phone. "You still want to go through with breaking up with me?"

And that's how Grayson left Beck's apartment with a hickey on his neck, feeling more trapped than ever.

"Oh thank god, I was just about to head up there." Ethan says, relieved to see Grayson seemingly intact.

"I did it." Grayson lies through a forced smile.

"Oh Gray, I'm so proud, honestly. It must have been hard. Was he mad?"

"A little, but it's okay." Grayson says, feeling guilty. "Let's just go."

On the ride back Ethan keeps telling Grayson how happy and proud he is, making Grayson feel even more helpless. He's lying to the one person who could help him, effectively leaving him completely stuck in his situation. Beck has him backed into a corner, and even if he did tell Ethan, Ethan would know he lied and never trust him again.

"Hey lets order in tonight to celebrate!" Ethan says. "And we can watch a movie too, just you n' me."

Grayson musters a slight smile at this, wanting to pretend for a moment that he did actually break up with Beck and that everything was okay.

* * *

They settled on watching Monsters Inc. their favourite movie when they were little. Although spending time with Ethan did help his spirits somewhat, it was hard to stay focused on the screen since about halfway through Beck texted him saying he wants to meet up tomorrow. When Grayson didn't reply Beck kept texting him about what he would do if Grayson didn't oblige, how he could ruin his life. Grayson knew he didn't have a choice so he agreed.

* * *

That night, when he couldn't stop the guilt swelling his chest from lying to Ethan or stub the worry of what Beck might do he decided to take a shower. He needed to distract himself before his racing mind forced him into a panic attack.

But his thoughts only seemed to get worse the longer he stood under the warm water. He had never lied to Ethan like this before, he couldn't help but feel like he should be punished. So in a flurry of self-hate, Grayson twisted the knob of the shower as far to left as it could go. He flinched under the extreme heat but forced himself to stay put, he was finally feeling some relief from his emotions. It was just the distraction he was looking for. He had heard of people using physical pain to help their mental pain and he never understood that coping strategy until now. He wondered what a stronger physical pain might do for him, could it help him even more?

The hot water kept flowing as Grayson picked up his shaving razor thinking about what kind of person he would be if he did what he was about to do. But also how easily it could ease his pain. Before he could act any further there was a loud knock on the bathroom door, causing Grayson to drop the razor into the bottom of the tub.

"You okay in there? You've been taking longer than usual." Ethan called from behind the door. All at once, a heavy weight formed in his stomach and a flash of guilt washed over him. Feeling that he has just been caught doing something he shouldn't, Grayson shut the water off and kicked his razor in the corner of the shower. Ethan stood behind the door clueless to what he just stopped Grayson from doing.

"Uh yeah I'm good, done now!" Grayson called back, hastily grabbed the towel hanging up outside the shower.

* * *

Ethan's POV

It was almost a week after Grayson broke up with Beck, Ethan had hoped things would go back to normal but Grayson's mood hasn't improved. He still stayed in his room most of day, sleeping into the afternoons. Ethan had taken to making dinner every day for the both as them as it was the only way he could get Grayson to eat.

It was shaping up to be a typical Sunday afternoon, Grayson woke up and found his way to the couch by noon, glued to his phone like always. Noticing the sun shining high in the sky, Ethan decided his mission for the day was to get Grayson outside, give him a distraction from recent events.

"Hey Gray, wanna go in the pool with me today? Pool guy just cleaned it."

"Nah, I'm good" Grayson said, absentmindedly, not looking up from his phone.

"C'mon Gray, you haven't been outside in like 100 years!"

"I said I'm good."

"You're gonna miss spending quality time with your brother just so you can stare at your phone all day?" Ethan pouts.

Grayson continues to type away, not even hearing his brother. Ethan continues to try and coax him to hang out for the rest of the day to no avail.

Fed up with Grayson's dismissive behaviour, Ethan grabs Grayson's phone from his hands and gives him a smug look. "You're coming into the pool with me, no arguing. Who are you even talking to anyways?" Ethan freezes, staring at Grayson's phone confused. "Why are you- what the fuck? You're talking to Beck? But you told me you broke up with him, was that just a lie then?"

"Please don't be mad at me! I was scared, okay? He told me if I broke up with him he'd out me to everyone, including our family." Grayson rushed to explain, pleading for Ethan to understand.

"HE WHAT?" Ethan was beyond furious, this motherfucker was using one of Grayson's closest kept secrets as blackmail. Ethan knew the amount of courage it took for Grayson to come out even just to him, he couldn't imagine what Beck outing him to the world would do to his baby brother. "I'm calling this asshole right now."

"No you're not." Grayson said, ripping his phone back from Ethan's hands.

"Then what are you going to do? You can't let him do this to you."

"I know." Grayson eyes welled up as he covered his mouth with his hand, muffling his sob. "I just don't know what to do."

Ethan sat down beside him, pulling him into his chest. "We'll figure it out, okay? What proof does he have to out you with?"

"Pictures. On his phone. There's us kissing, us on dates and who knows what else. I'm trapped."

Ethan carded his fingers through Grayson's hair. "You're not trapped, I promise. What about telling the police? Blackmailing is a crime isn't it."

"I already looked into that, he's not demanding money or property so it doesn't count apparently." Grayson replies.

"What about for slander?"

"But he'd have to actually out me first. Plus it's not like it's not true. Trust me I've researched everything, there's nothing."

They both fell silent for a moment. Ethan's mind racing with possible plans of action.

"We need his phone, and I think I know how we can get it."

* * *

After a few days of working through Ethan's plan, everything was set to go. Grayson invited Beck to their house under the pretense that Ethan was out for the day. Although Ethan was sick at the thought of Beck being even in the same room as Grayson, he knew if everything went right, it would be for the last time. And if there was any sign of violence Ethan was only in the next room.

Grayson had managed to make Beck think everything was fine between them, he made sure to show no signs that he was scared or mad. He acted as though he's still in love with Beck.

Currently, they were sat at the couch watching a movie, Grayson hoping it would be enough to keep Beck distracted while Ethan set the plan in motion. But Beck had other ideas, he placed his hand on Grayson's chest, moving to kiss his lips. Slowly forcing Grayson down on his back, kissing him more urgently. Grayson didn't know what to do except pray Ethan hurried.

* * *

Ethan could hear what was happening in the next room and he knew he needed to act now. He crept into the living room as quietly as he could, stepping over certain floor boards he knew creaked. He could see Beck on top of Grayson and was so tempted to just forget the plan and kill Beck on the spot. But he knew that would get him nowhere, at least for now. Right now he needed to focus on getting Beck's phone. He could see it now, just sitting on the side table right beside the couch. It would be hard to grab it without being seen, but as long as he had the phone, it wouldn't matter what happened after that.

Ethan crouched down, slowing continuing forward towards the couch, their kissing sounds getting louder. Ethan knew if he didn't have that phone in the next 5 seconds he was going to lose his shit. He was close to the table now, he just had to reach forward. His heart in his throat, his fingers just barely touching the device.

"What are you doing?" Beck's voice making Ethan freeze. He looked up to see Beck standing over him and Grayson with swollen lips looking scared on the couch behind him. Before Ethan could react, Beck had snatched his phone off the table. Ethan stood to full height, aiming to intimidate Beck.

"Grayson told me what you're doing. And I'm not about to let that happen. So give me the phone Beck."

"Yeah fucking right."

In one motion, Ethan sprung forward and grabbed Beck's arm, twisting it behind his back. Ethan worked with his other hand to pry Beck's fingers open from around the phone, it dropped to the floor.

"Grayson grab the phone!" Ethan yelled.

Before Grayson could move, Beck veered back, slamming the back of his head against Ethan's. He released Beck, clutching his head. Beck kneed him in the stomach and Ethan dropped to his knees. His breath left him and he doubled over in pain.

Beck picked up the phone off the ground, dusting it off on his shirt. "You really thought this would work? C'mon Grayson, we're leaving."

"I'm not going." Grayson said.

"What the fuck did you just say?" Beck said turning to face Grayson.

Before Beck could even look him in the eye, Grayson picked up the lamp beside him and swung.

In the next moment, Beck was on the ground, head bleeding from the temple.

"Holy shit, is he dead?" Grayson cried. At this point Ethan had mostly recovered from his assault, and he moved to check Beck's pulse.

"No, he's just conscious." Ethan said, still struggling to get his breath back.

"God, I feel so gross." Grayson said scrubbing at his lips with the back of his hand.

"It's okay buddy, it's over now."

* * *

Before calling the police, they thought it was best to erase Beck's phone, thankfully Grayson knew the password. When the police arrived, Ethan explained the whole thing, from Beck being an abusive asshole. To the assault in the living room. They left out the blackmail part, not wanting the police to think they may have initiated the fight in any way. Beck went to jail for 6 months and wasn't allowed to be within a certain distance of Grayson once he was out.

It took a long time but eventually Grayson felt safe again, felt like Beck was finally gone from his life. He opened up to Ethan about the entirety of their relationship the good and the bad and Ethan was there for him. Grayson even told Ethan about what he unknowingly stopped him from doing in the bathroom. Therapy became a useful tool for the both of them, helping them to work through their feelings of guilt, fear and shame.

A year later, with encouragement from Ethan, Grayson came out to the world. It was one of the hardest but best things he's ever done. He felt he could finally be himself and love freely knowing that he had people around him who supported him.

Life wasn't perfect but he knew he'd be alright with Ethan by his side.

* * *

Hoped you guys enjoyed! It took a lot of planning to figure out the ending, I hope it paid off. Would love to know what you guys think and what you'd like to see next :)


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